Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1887-02-26
ANOTHER ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
W00L-GR0WER?


The summary of imports for the
eleven months ending November 30
1886, Treasury Document No. 94O
gives these figures for imports Of
wool and its products in that time.
Dress Goods, 69,936,943 sqr. yds.
weolen aud worsted cloths, 7,955.924
pounds; yarns (nearly all worsted
yarns), 4,717,949; rags, shoddy.
waste, &C.. 1868. 694; clothing wool,
34,29s,O64; combing wool, 6, 446,Sl5:
carpet wool land other similar), a.
095, 7s5.
To see just what all this means to
the American wool-grower, let us re-.
duce these figures to the shape of
pounds of greasy wool, aud we will
omit entirely the 100000 square
yards of dress goods. Let them
represent what might be called
fair share of our trade to be given
to the foreign makers of any luxuri
GUS articles of very great taste and
cost, which are not yet made here.
The figures given as equivalents in
greasy wool are furnished BY men in
the various trades and manufactures,
and are reliable. This is how our
table looks then:
Wooden and worsted cloths, say
%, 900, 900 pounds yarns, 100000;
ring waste, 100000; clothing
wool, 35,0OO,OOO; combing wool, 10
900, 900; carpet and similar, 10000
900.
This makes the total for eleven
months 100000 lbs. wool 10 the
grease; or, we may say, and that
without counting the odd month,
that the American wool clip of 1886
(about 43O, 900, 900 lbs) met when it
came to market to the machinery
which alone could consume tex.
port being impossible quantity of
foreign wool in some shape equal to
100, 100000 lbs of wool in the grease.
And sometimes it found the
machinery idle, because the foreign
wool was already ahead of it in the
market, as goods.
The grower will take notice that
nearly one,half of this 10O,OO0OOO
lbs came in as goods under the first
three heads, and about onef forth is
in fern first sent IN any consider
able quantity since the tariff" tinker.
ingn of 'S3-that is, as worsted
yarns and "ring waste" Let him
notice further that this last (which
is only srings" by the failure, in
territorial or otherwise, to finish the
spinning operation) is a competitor
whose work last year was done
largely in the last seven or eight
months. No man dare prophesy
what can be laid down here in full
year, working under duty of 1Oc. a
pound, which is all it pays.
And now the Attorney General
has submitted to the Secretary Of
the Treasury an opinion that
f" topsn should come in at same rate
of duty as secured wool, and it is
worth while to see what this will
mean. Tops are wool that has been
secured, and then further cleaned or
improved in condition by passing
through the cards and combs. 1t is
thus superior to secured wool in the
matter of condition, and has had
labor and expense added, which are
sufficient reasons for imposing a
higher rate of duty than that upol
secured wool.
But how will the decision if adopt.
ed as the rule of the Department
affect the wool-growerY There are
in this country, not counting the
combs upon carpet stock, about 900
combs running to produce tops for
worsted yarns. A low estimate OF
their product daily is 200 lbs, or
60, 900 pounds each per year. This
gives, for 500 combs, yearly output
of 1000, 900 lbs Of tops, which will
represent, If divided equally into
fine, medium and low 100000 lbs
each), 25,00O,O0O lbs of fine wool,
10000 900 lbs of medium, and 10,
600, 900 lbs or coarse wool, all in the
grease. That makes round total
of 10000, 900 lbs of wool, now to be
invited here In new form. AND
where will the wool-grower find him
self when his next clip comes 10
market, if beside the present open
and secret avenues of ingress for It's
rivals there is opened this easy way
for secured wool to come here as
tops ~
-.